Sean's Zero Transmission(Stream spoilers, complete)

[Nova.EXE]

NO! not poor sean :O . This story is getting really emotional for me..
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[TheWebbuilder]

AMZ, sorry about that, but it's the direction I was going from the beginning.

Begin Chapter!

Zero’s head snapped up; cold, bitter fury filling his eyes.

“He‘s mine.” The swordsman leapt to his feet. With a spry jump he flew away from the deceased Sean and the two Cross Fusion Rangers. His jump carried him to the roof of an adjacent building and from there he leapt to the roof of the next building in line.

“What the-?!” CF ProtoMan looked up after the retreating Asteroid Navi.

“He‘s snapped!” CF MegaMan jumped upright. “Watching Sean die has entirely unhinged him, he‘s going after Scratch!”

“And heaven help the man if Zero catches up to him.” The Red Raider muttered.

“Listen, you take care of Sean, and then get to Den Tech Memorial. Pry the location of Scratch‘s HQ out of Red and then come after me.” The Blue Bomber looked upward as twin bursts of flame began pouring out of his boots. “I‘ll try and track down Zero and keep him from annihilating Scratch. Air Shoes, Battle Chip in!”

“Lan, wait!” CF ProtoMan scrambled after the Blue Cross Fused Navi, but the Bomber was already flying through the air in pursuit of the suddenly renegade Asteroid Navi. “LAN!”

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“We‘re almost out of air time, Lan.” The Blue Navi warned his human counterpart.

“I hear you,” CF MegaMan kept his gaze locked onto the fleeting glimpse he had of Zero. “Man, he‘s fast. I don‘t know if we could keep up with him if this Air Shoes chip gives out.”

“We‘ll find a way, Lan, we always do.”

“I know, I just hope we can squirrel out of this mess.” The human side of the Cross Fusion sighed. “I really don‘t want to hurt Zero, but I can‘t let him kill Scratch- no matter how rotten the guy is.”

“We‘ll worry about that later, right now we‘ve got to worry about the Battle Chip giving out- in three seconds!”

CF MegaMan risked a look backward at his feet. Already the jets on his boots were sputtering and choking as they desperately tried to burn Chip Energy that wasn’t there anymore.

The Bomber glanced ahead, Zero was still outdistancing him. Unless he did something drastic fast, they were going to lose the Asteroid Navi.

“Dash, Battle Chip in!”

Instantly, the Blue Cross Fusion Ranger’s color scheme inverted itself, signaling the Chip’s activation. The Bomber dropped effortlessly to the roof below him and began running and leaping from one structure to the next at amazingly high speeds.

A grin passed over the Bomber’s lips as he began catching up to his prey. He would be able to keep with Zero, maybe he had a chance at pulling this off after all.

Slowly his smile faded, what would he do if he caught up to the Navi?

Before he had too much time to ponder that thought, Zero abruptly changed course. The Asteroid Navi dropped over the edge of one of the buildings and down to the alleyway below.

“He‘s either trying to shake us or he‘s found what he‘s looking for.” CF MegaMan muttered.

The Blue Cross Fusion Ranger dropped over the edge and maintained his pursuit.

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For the third time that night, a column of light exploded out of the ground. After a few seconds, the light faded away- revealing the formidable form of Asteroid FlameMan.

The fiery Navi glared forward, staring intently at his old foe. Zero was racing right at him, and it was plain to see that the sword-wielding Navi had lost his mind.

FlameMan rumbled a low challenge. It was warning his opponent of his intent to delete him.

“Not today.” Zero’s yellow eyes narrowed as he continued his headlong attack. “You murdered my Net Op in cold blood. You don‘t deserve to exist. I am going to destroy you!”

The red and white Navi thrust out his arm, calling his blade into existence. “Prepare to die, murderer!!”

FlameMan never stood a chance.

The fiery Asteroid Navi screamed in pained fury as Zero shot by, landing three separate slashes on his chest.

“Hyper Slash,” Zero didn’t waste an instant, refusing to give his opponent the time he needed to recover from the blow. Snapping about, the out-of-control Navi unleashed a silver shock wave of energy from his sword. “Sonic BOOM!”

FlameMan took the attack full force, and reeled backward as the shock wave detonated. Before he had a chance to right his balance, Zero dropped down from the sky, his sword impaling him from above.

It didn’t end there.

The red and white Navi twisted and unleashed another Hyper Slash on the fiery Navi, before leaping upward and dragging his sword along FlameMan from the crown of his foot to the top of his head. At the apex of his leap, the crimson warrior fired off another Sonic Boom and then vaulted backward.

The fire Navi stumbled and faltered, completely overwhelmed by the speed and savageness of the attacks.

“This ends now!” Zero exploded into motion and lashed out at his adversary, and then stopped on the other side of his opponent. Behind the sword-wielding Navi, FlameMan exploded into a cloud of fire and smoke.

FlameMan, Data Deleted.

The entire process had taken seconds.

“Beware, ‘Scratch‘.” Zero turned and glared at the dilapidated structure before him. “You‘re next.”

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From his position inside of the condemned building, Scratch looked on Zero’s actions in growing horror.

He’d never expected to lose FlameMan. Without his own Asteroid Navi, he didn’t have much defense against the Net Savers, his own ‘charges’, and a certain rampaging Asteroid Navi that was intent on killing him.

Glancing over at the large storage locker on the adjacent wall, the man consoled himself with the fact that he still had a trump card to play against the Net Police and Net Savers… but the card wouldn’t mean a thing against Zero. If the Asteroid Navi had truly gone crazy, then there was nothing he could do to save himself. He knew firsthand the power that those Navis packed- and there was next to nothing that could stop them.

And unless he somehow figured out how to Cross Fuse with a Normal Navi in ten point eight seconds, Scratch wouldn’t have any protection against the rampaging Zero.

As it turned out, he didn’t even have ten seconds. He only had one-

And then the outside wall of his building exploded into a mass of dirt, dust, and falling concrete.

Stunned, Scratch couldn’t resist as the force of the explosion lifted him up off of the floor and slammed him into the back wall. The wiry man dropped to the ground in a daze. Even through his fogged brain, the man had enough presence of mind to sense his attacker entering the room through the swirling mist of dust and grime.

His mind reawakening, Scratch looked up to find Zero standing over him. The red and white Navi’s sword was drawn and poised above the man’s chest.

“You filthy human.” Zero stared down at the tormentor he had come to destroy. “You don‘t deserve to live.”

Scratch tried to form a protest to that remark, but found that he was still too winded to speak.

“And I‘m going to kill you, just like you killed Sean.” The Asteroid Navi thrust his blade downward- intentionally missing the man’s side by a half-inch. “And then my Net Op will be avenged.”

Zero pulled his sword back and slashed horizontally at Scratch’s head. The wiry man slouched even lower, just barely avoiding the attack.

Several of his severed hairs floated downward, to rest on Scratch’s chest.

Even as his tormentor lifted his blade to strike again, the doomed man grinned. Despite all of his high talk and suddenly discovered morals, Sean had failed to train the evil out of Zero. For some reason that he couldn’t understand the rogue adult took comfort in the fact that he would be slain by a being that was exactly like he was in spirit.

“And now…” The white and red Navi prepared to plunge his sword into the man’s chest. “You die.”

“ZERO, NO!”

Distracted by the sudden shout, the Asteroid Navi looked over his shoulder to find CF MegaMan entering the room via the blown out wall. The Blue Cross Fusion Ranger held up his hands in a non-threatening manner and retracted his mouth-guard.

“Zero, you can‘t do this.” The Bomber said.

“Stay out of this, MegaMan.” Zero looked back to his terrified prey. “This piece of trash is mine. I must avenge Sean.”

“If you do this, then you‘ll have failed Sean.” CF MegaMan took a slow step forward. “This isn‘t the route that Sean would want you to take.”

“And how would you know?” The red Navi kept his eyes trained on Scratch, who was still pinned beneath the Asteroid Navi‘s feet. “How would you know what he would want?! Sean‘s dead- and this man killed him. Now he must die. It is justice.”

CF MegaMan frantically tried to come up with a reply, a way to talk Zero down, anything to keep him from thrusting that sword into Scratch.

“Admit it, MegaMan, I‘m right, and you know it.” Zero hauled back his sword to finish his task. “He dies- now!”

“Zero, wait!”

The Asteroid Navi took one quick look over his shoulder- and froze as he found Lan standing behind him with CF MegaMan nowhere to be found.

“Is this what Sean would want?” The brunette Net Op took another step forward. Somehow, he knew that if he ever wanted Zero to listen to the voice of reason, then he had to appeal to Zero as a human friend of Sean’s and not a Cross Fused Net Saver. “Would Sean really want you to kill Scratch?”

“This is not about what Sean would want.” Zero replied, with just a hint of uncertainty in his eyes and voice. “This is about vengeance.”

“Vengeance for who?” Lan spoke. “For Sean or for yourself…? If Sean wanted Scratch dead, then he could have set you loose on him back when you escaped. But he didn‘t, instead he just had you get him to safety. Does that tell you that Sean wants this man dead?”

“Things are different now.” The Asteroid Navi snapped back. “Sean‘s dead…”

“I know.” The brunette nodded slowly, fighting to keep the tears out of his eyes. His grief was raw and still painful, but he had to keep it at bay for the moment. “And I miss him, I miss him terribly… But we can still honor him for what he was- a courageous boy, my friend, who pulled himself out of this place and rose above it. And he pulled you out too, are you going to throw that all away and sink back to this… this monster‘s level? Would you be honoring Sean‘s name or tarnishing it by killing Scratch?”

“I…” Zero stuttered uneasily. Deep down, he knew that Lan was right. Killing Scratch would do nothing but harm Sean’s memory. This was not the course of action that his Net Op would have taken.

“Please, Zero, I‘m asking you as Sean friend… Don‘t do this…”

The red Navi looked down, down at Scratch. The wiry man was still grinning wildly, and for a split second, the sword-wielding Navi saw a glimpse of himself in Scratch. The adult would gladly kill his enemies or those who he thought had wronged him… No… no, he wouldn’t become a monster like his man who had killed his Net Op. To do so would have destroy Sean if he were still alive...

“I won‘t.” Zero lowered his blade to his side. “I won‘t.”

The swordsman took a step back and deactivated his blade.

Scratch scrambled to a sitting position and looked strangely smug. Almost as if he had expected Zero to back off.

Lan breathed a sigh of relief… and then gasped in horror.

One instant Scratch had been lying prostrate on the floor, and the next he was standing beside the large, gray locker sitting against the back wall. With a sadistic smile plastered on his face, the wiry adult snapped the container open to reveal it’s contents.

Zero and Lan gaped in open astonishment.

Bound and gagged in the locker was none other that Yuri.

“Thanks for saving my life.” Scratch hauled the dazed Yuri out of the locker and held her between himself and Lan and Zero. The next second, the adult had plucked a pistol from his pocket, which he promptly waved at his captive.

“What the-” Lan stared at the fugitive in disbelief.

“Surely the dearly departed Sean told you that I have this habit of changing the rules at any given moment.” Scratch kept his weapon trained at his captive. “I‘m going to leave, and you‘re going to let me. If you don‘t, then Yuri suffers the same fate as Sean- she dies.”

The brunette Net Op growled in frustration as he took stock of the situation. Even if he was Cross Fused, there was no way he could cross the distance between himself and Scratch before the wiry adult could pull the trigger.

“Let her go, Scratch.” The boy clenched his fists, trying to restrain his anger. “You owe me for saving your life.”

“That I do, which is exactly why I didn‘t take you hostage.” Scratch grinned savagely.

Zero’s eyes narrowed into barely existent slits as he assessed the situation. He would not allow this monster to escape.

“Now, if you‘ll excuse me…” The adult began backing towards the doorway, dragging Yuri with him.

Lan’s eyes flicked up to meet Yuri’s. The instant that their gaze met, he knew exactly what was going to happen, and he was prepared to act on it.

“Zero, get ready to go in” The brunette whispered.

Yuri’s eyes flashed, and then she struck. With amazing agility she snapped her torso forward, and then pivoting on one leg she lashed out with her other. Her boot slammed into Scratch’s stomach, knocking him off balance and driving him backward, away from her.

“Zero, now!”

The Asteroid Navi exploded into motion, moving so fast that he became nothing more than a trail of after-images.

Scratch brought his gun up to bear at Yuri; as he fell, his fingers reflexively tightened around the trigger.

A deafening roar resounded as the bullet tore out of the gun barrel and began it’s course- straight into Yuri’s heart.

And then a bolt of fury intervened.

Zero materialized out of nowhere, his sword extended and directly in the path of the bullet. The slug of metal slammed into the blade and ricocheted back along it’s original path to slam into the wall behind Scratch- missing his head by a hair’s breath.

“I said that I wouldn‘t kill you.” Zero pointed his sword at Scratch. “But if I were you, I wouldn‘t tempt me.”

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SciLab, Two weeks later.

“Are you sure about this, Zero?” Lan looked from his father and Chaud to the computer monitor before him.

“Yes.” The swordsman nodded. “With Sean… gone… I have no Net Op, no purpose. Therefore, I must make my own purpose. And to do that, I must strike out on my own, lending assistance wherever it is needed.”

The brunette nodded his understanding. “Sean would be proud of you.”

“I shall do my best to keep it that way.” The red and white Navi nodded.

“Before you leave,” Dr. Hikari stepped forward, and shoved one a disk into the computer. “I have a gift for you.”

Zero allowed himself the liberty of raising one eyebrow as a rush of energy gathered in the space before him and transformed into the strangest creature he had ever seen. The being was no taller than half way up to his knee, vaguely humanoid, and wore a dark blue jumpsuit on it’s arms and legs. A mess of black hair framed it’s blue-eyed, childish face; and two wire-like wings flew out of it’s back.

“This is a little guy we call ‘MERGE‘,” Yuuichiaro explained, “short for Medical Emergency Response Generating Entity. Since you won‘t have a PET to house and repair you, Merge will fill that role by keeping you in good repair and health.”

“He’s a Cyber Elf, it‘s like a digital PET without the Net Op.” Chaud picked up the explanation. “Because you‘ll need something to keep you patched together.”

Zero nodded and glanced at the creature. Which winked at him and rushed to his side.

“Hello,” Merge grinned impishly. “You must be Mr. Zero, Merge will take good care of you! Merge will stay with Mr. Zero and keep Mr. Zero functioning.”

Lan was certain that if Zero had an eye-rolling ability, he would have used it. As it was, it took everything that the brunette had to keep from laughing at the site of the giddy Merge clinging to the stoic Zero.

“I‘m sure you will prove… useful.” The Asteroid Navi muttered, before looking back at the trio of humans. “Thank you for trusting me enough to allow me to do this. I will not forget you.”

“Stay safe, Zero,” Lan replied. “and good luck.”

The Asteroid Navi nodded, then turned his back on the view screen. As soon as his golden hair had fallen into place, the red Navi glanced at Merge and then the two vanished in a burst of pixilated light.

“For you Sean.” The Navi muttered.

Zero Logging Out.

End story.
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[Wackoguy]

And the story comes to an end,or does it-? Just out of curiousity,will there be a type of sequel to this story? It looks like the ending paints the way for it...

I still can't believe Sean died,but at least Zero can get on with his life and so can Yuri. T_T Poor,poor Sean...I didn't really see it coming,but everyone's reactions to his death were portrayed well,especially Zero. He seemed almost human,seeking vengance.

A grand story that was wrapped up in gold-paper,and nothing seemed rushed either. :V
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[CrossFusionStarman]

...wow. The ending was beautiful. I hope you type a sequel, as your writing is awesome. Poor Zero. That must've been hard on him, and the ending just screams out loud cliffhanger. Great work. I hope you write more.
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[TheWebbuilder]

There won't be a sequel immediately, but I have been kicking the idea around.

On to the next fic! /o/
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[Nova.EXE]

A sequel would be awesome. Zero was pretty hard core on vengeance for a while. I thought he and Megaman would end up fighting.
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[Abiisan]

That was such a sad story, but I think it's cool that Zero and a cyber elf are wandering around now.
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